The “Black Lions” of VFA-213 first flew F-4B Phantoms for many years, then were transitioned to the F-14A Tomcat, and have since transitioned to the F/A-18 Hornet. The squadron embarked on their first Tomcat cruise as part of CVW-11 onboard the USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63) in October 1977, and their last Tomcat cruise in late 2005/early 2006. They were one of two F-14 Tomcat squadrons during the final Tomcat cruise (VF-31 was the other). This is the current color version of their Hornet aircraft oval patch.
